Project Delivery Methodology
The ASI AI Project Framework — a hybrid Agile/Waterfall methodology tailored for IT infrastructure, cloud migration, and AI solution delivery projects.
Framework Philosophy: We use Waterfall gates for governance and milestone control, combined with Agile sprint delivery within each phase for flexibility and rapid iteration. This balances the structured requirements of enterprise IT with the adaptability needed for complex technology projects.
Framework Overview
Phase 1Initiation
Phase 2Planning
Phase 3Execution
Phase 4Monitor & Control
Phase 5Closure
Phase 1: Initiation
Duration: 1–2 weeks | Gate: Project Charter approved by Steering Committee
Business Case
Every project must have a documented business case that articulates:
- Problem statement: What business problem or opportunity does this project address?
- Proposed solution: High-level description of the approach
- Expected benefits: Quantified where possible (cost savings, efficiency gains, risk reduction)
- Estimated cost: Capital and operational expenditure, internal resource costs
- Timeline: High-level target dates
- Strategic alignment: How the project supports ASI or client strategic objectives
- Alternatives considered: Other options evaluated and why they were not selected
Template: Project Charter
📄 Project Charter
Project Name
[Descriptive project name]
Project ID
[PRJ-YYYY-NNN]
Client / Sponsor
[Client name and executive sponsor]
Project Manager
[Assigned PM name]
Project Objectives
[2-4 SMART objectives]
Scope Summary
[In scope and explicitly out of scope items]
Key Deliverables
[List of tangible deliverables]
Key Milestones
[Major milestones with target dates]
Budget
[Total approved budget: $AUD]
Key Risks
[Top 3-5 risks identified at initiation]
Key Stakeholders
[Name, role, involvement level]
Success Criteria
[How will we measure project success?]
Approval
[Steering Committee sign-off: Name, Date]
Phase 2: Planning
Duration: 1–3 weeks | Gate: Project Plan approved, baseline set
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
The PM decomposes the project scope into manageable work packages in Monday.com:
- Level 1: Project phases
- Level 2: Major deliverables
- Level 3: Work packages (assigned to individuals)
- Level 4: Tasks (granular, typically 1-5 day duration)
Resource Plan
| Role | Typical Allocation | Skills Required |
|---|---|---|
| Project Manager | 50-100% (based on project size) | PMP/PRINCE2, stakeholder management, Monday.com |
| Solutions Architect | 25-50% during design phases | Cloud architecture, enterprise networking, security |
| Senior Engineer(s) | 50-100% during execution | Domain-specific (Azure, AWS, networking, security) |
| AI/ML Engineer | 25-50% for AI components | Python, ML Ops, Azure AI, data engineering |
| Security Consultant | 25% throughout | Essential Eight, ISO 27001, penetration testing |
| QA/Test Engineer | 50% during testing phases | Test planning, automation, UAT facilitation |
Template: Risk Register
📄 Risk Register
| Risk ID | Description | Likelihood | Impact | Score | Mitigation | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-001 | [Risk description] | [H/M/L] | [H/M/L] | [1-25] | [Mitigation strategy] | [Name] | [Open] |
| R-002 | [Risk description] | [H/M/L] | [H/M/L] | [1-25] | [Mitigation strategy] | [Name] | [Open] |
Score = Likelihood (1-5) × Impact (1-5). Scores ≥ 15 require immediate mitigation. Review weekly.
Phase 3: Execution
Duration: Variable (typically 4–16 weeks) | Gate: All deliverables complete and tested
Sprint Delivery Model
Within the Execution phase, work is delivered in 2-week sprints:
- Sprint Planning: Monday morning (1 hour). PM, tech lead, and team select sprint backlog from WBS.
- Daily Stand-up: 15 minutes, 09:15 AEST. Each team member: what I did yesterday, what I'm doing today, any blockers.
- Sprint Review: Friday afternoon of sprint end week. Demo deliverables to client stakeholders.
- Sprint Retrospective: Internal, Friday after sprint review. What went well, what to improve, action items.
Weekly Status Report
📄 Weekly Status Report
Project
[Project name] — [PRJ-YYYY-NNN]
Report Date
[DD/MM/YYYY]
Overall Status
[Green / Amber / Red] with brief explanation
Schedule Status
[On track / X days behind / X days ahead]
Budget Status
[On budget / $X over / $X under] — [X% of budget consumed, Y% of work complete]
Accomplishments This Week
[Bullet list of completed tasks/milestones]
Planned Next Week
[Bullet list of planned activities]
Risks & Issues
[New risks, escalated issues, decisions needed]
Client Action Items
[Items requiring client input/decision with due dates]
Phase 4: Monitoring & Control
This phase runs concurrently with Execution and continues until project closure.
KPIs Tracked
| KPI | Measurement | Target | Reporting Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule Performance Index (SPI) | Earned Value / Planned Value | ≥ 0.95 | Weekly |
| Cost Performance Index (CPI) | Earned Value / Actual Cost | ≥ 0.95 | Weekly |
| Scope Changes | Number of approved change requests | ≤ 3 per project | Per occurrence |
| Risk Exposure | Sum of (probability × impact) for open risks | Decreasing trend | Weekly |
| Defect Rate | Defects found per sprint / deliverable | Decreasing trend | Per sprint |
| Client Satisfaction | Pulse survey score at sprint reviews | ≥ 4/5 | Bi-weekly |
Scope Management
All scope changes must follow this process:
- Change request submitted in Monday.com with business justification
- PM assesses impact on schedule, budget, and resources
- Impact assessment shared with client and Steering Committee
- Approval required from: client executive sponsor + ASI project board (for changes > 10% budget impact)
- Approved changes incorporated into project plan with updated baseline
- Rejected changes documented with rationale
Phase 5: Closure
Duration: 1–2 weeks | Gate: Client acceptance and project sign-off
Closure Activities
- Acceptance testing: Client UAT completed, all critical/high defects resolved
- Client acceptance: Formal sign-off obtained from client executive sponsor
- Documentation handover: All project documentation archived in Confluence (design docs, as-built diagrams, runbooks, training materials)
- Knowledge transfer: Handover sessions with Service Delivery/managed services team
- Financial closure: Final invoicing, budget reconciliation, PO closure
- Resource release: Team members formally released back to resource pool
- Lessons learned: Workshop conducted, document published
- Project retrospective: Internal review with project board
- CRM update: Project status updated in HubSpot, potential follow-on opportunities logged
Template: Lessons Learned
📄 Lessons Learned Report
Project Name & ID
[Project name] — [PRJ-YYYY-NNN]
Project Manager
[Name]
Duration
[Planned: X weeks / Actual: Y weeks]
Budget
[Planned: $X / Actual: $Y / Variance: $Z (N%)]
What Went Well
[List successes, effective practices, positive client feedback]
What Could Be Improved
[Challenges, delays, areas for improvement]
Recommendations for Future Projects
[Specific, actionable recommendations]
Client Feedback Summary
[Key points from client satisfaction survey]
Governance Structure
| Body | Members | Frequency | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steering Committee | Client Exec Sponsor, ASI VP Ops, Head of PD, PM | Monthly or as needed | Strategic decisions, budget approval, escalation resolution, go/no-go gates |
| Project Board | Head of PD, PM, Solutions Architect, SDM | Fortnightly | Resource allocation, cross-project dependencies, risk review |
| Project Team | PM, Engineers, Consultants | Daily stand-up + weekly | Execution coordination, blocker resolution, sprint management |
Project Management Tools
Monday.com
Primary project management tool. Used for WBS, task tracking, Gantt charts, resource allocation, sprint boards, and client-facing project dashboards.
Confluence
Documentation repository for project artefacts: design documents, meeting notes, decisions log, and as-built documentation.
Microsoft Teams
Communication hub. Each project gets a dedicated Teams channel for daily stand-ups, client communication, and file sharing.
HubSpot CRM
Tracks project commercial details, client contacts, project-to-opportunity linkage, and follow-on sales opportunities.
Project Delivery Metrics
89%
On-Time Delivery Rate
92%
On-Budget Delivery Rate
4.4/5
Client Satisfaction
$1.2M
Avg Project Value